


At First Sight

by dreamsofspike



Category: How I Met Your Mother
Genre: F/M, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-09-11
Updated: 2011-09-11
Packaged: 2017-10-23 15:28:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/251953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreamsofspike/pseuds/dreamsofspike
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on a prompt that asked what would have happened if Barney had met Marshall and Lily way before they met Ted, and as a result of an ad he posted on Craigs List, looking for Doms in the NYC area. :) It got a bit more angsty than I was planning, but I hope you enjoy it :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	At First Sight

"Hey. Barney?"

Barney nodded as the pretty redhead ushered him through the front door of her apartment, a convulsive swallow visible in his throat. As the door closed firmly behind him, the other person in the room came into view -- a man with a tall, slightly husky frame and a disarmingly friendly smile, leaning against the back of a chair.

"I'm Lily," the redhead announced, gesturing as she made her introductions, "and this is my boyfriend Marshall."

"Hi, Barney."

"Nice to meet you."

"Thanks so much for coming here to meet us," Lily continued, leading the way to the sofa and gesturing for him to sit down, though she did not sit down herself. "It's so much more convenient this way..."

"And gives us a good idea of how willing to please you'll actually be," Marshall added as he exchanged a knowing smile with Lily.

Barney nervously returned the smile, but he felt a brief swell of alarm as he remembered the doubts he'd had about coming here. It was usually his practice to meet any potential Doms in public, neutral settings, rather than making himself immediately vulnerable by meeting on their territory.

Not to mention the actual physical danger of meeting a stranger for sexual purposes in a place where said stranger was totally in control.

Lily picked up a printout sheet from the desk where their computer was set up, reading aloud from it.

"Submissive male seeks dominant couple for occasional short term activities, with potential for more. _Soft so-called Doms need not apply._ "

She looked up at him with a mildly puzzled frown. "What did you mean by that?"

Barney held her gaze, his voice soft and solemn as he stated bluntly, without apology.

"I'm not looking for someone who's gonna ask me every ten seconds whether or not I'm okay, whether they're hurting me. I'm here because I _want_ someone to hurt me... to take over completely and take whatever they need from me without restriction."

"Without restriction," Lily echoed dubiously, clearly not quite believing him. "Aside from your safe word, of course."

"I don't use them," Barney informed her flatly. "If I decide to enter an arrangement with the two of you... it will be because I've decided that I can trust you without it."

" _No one_ should be trusted with _that_ much power."

Barney looked up at Marshall's quiet statement, then looked away again at the appraising look Marshall was giving him.

The three of them talked a little while longer about their backgrounds, personalities, likes and dislikes -- just basically getting to know each other.

"I'd like to give it a... a trial run... if you guys want to..." Barney suggested at last. "For like... a few hours... and if we both enjoy it, well... then we can talk about something more long term..."

Lily and Marshall exchanged a look before Lily looked at Barney and said, "We need to talk for just a minute. Will you excuse us for a moment?"

Barney nodded and stayed where he was, quietly waiting for the couple to return.

*************************

"I like him," Lily decided, her voice hushed as they conferred in the bedroom. "He's... stunning, really. And I think he'd be a good match for us... but..." She frowned, shaking her head as she met her boyfriend's eyes with concern. "... he's _so_ reckless. It's dangerous. It's almost as if he... doesn't even _care_ if someone really hurts him. It's... self-destructive."

"I know." Marshall nodded, frowning, before his smile broke into a hopeful half-smile. "But... maybe that just means... he needs us that much more..."

**************************

Barney had just enough time to get a little bit nervous before Lily and Marshall returned to the living room. She stood in front of the couch, looking down at him imperiously as she gave him their decision.

"We've decided to give it a try."

Barney nodded, opening his mouth to continue planning the arrangements. He jumped slightly when he felt Marshall's hands on him, one on his shoulder, pressing down slightly, and the other gripping his arm from behind.

"Ready to begin?"

A little breathless, Barney nodded, his heart racing with a mixture of fear and adrenaline.

"Get on your knees," Marshall ordered softly.

Barney immediately obeyed, crossing his wrists behind his back out of habit. His eyes were respectfully lowered, focused on Lily's black heels as she slowly paced closer to him until she was standing directly in front of him.

"Does anyone know you're here?"

His stomach lurched at that question, and Barney raised his eyes in alarm, searching her face for signs of danger as he replied in a hushed whisper.

"Y-yes..."

Her mouth twitched slightly in the barest beginnings of a knowing smile -- but a sharp slap across his face belied her humor, as his head was snapped to the side by the force of the blow. He tensed as she crouched in front of him, and a soft, firm hand gripped his chin, forcing him to look at her again.

"No, they don't. You didn't tell anyone you were coming here. Did you?"

His eyes widened, and he shook his head slightly in disbelief.

 _How could she possibly know?_

"No," he admitted. "I didn't."

She was quiet a moment, her expression solemn, her eyes glittering strangely as she finally responded in a whisper.

"That was very stupid."

Barney flinched slightly within her grasp, his body beginning to tremble as a shiver of apprehension ran up his spine, and he realized just how right she was.

 _This is it. They know they've got me where they want me. No one knows I'm here, and they can do whatever they want to me... I'm going to die here tonight..._

"You don't trust a total stranger with your life, Barney." Marshall spoke softly from beside him, and Barney realized that he was kneeling on the floor at his side. "You make sure you're safe at all times... unless..."

He paused, and Lily picked up where he had left off, her hand on Barney's face softening to a tender caress, her soft voice filled with understanding and sympathy.

"... unless... you don't care what happens to you. Unless... you hate yourself enough to let just any random pervert do whatever they want to do to you. You could get raped... tortured... _killed_ , Barney."

He felt his face flush with unexpected shame as he understood the motives he had previously mistaken, and he lowered his head, a strange burning behind his eyes. He swallowed hard, suddenly feeling incredibly exposed and vulnerable.

"I know," he whispered simply, miserably.

"We've only known you a little while," Marshall said in a gentle, reassuring tone, close to Barney's ear, a firm, steadying hand on his trembling shoulder. "But we've already figured out... you're worth more than that."

"You've been treating yourself like garbage," Lily murmured, her gentle fingertips brushing away a stray drop of moisture that had somehow escaped his closed eyes. "But we're not going to let you. Not anymore."


End file.
